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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28927092">bird watching</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/lazyfish/pseuds/lazyfish'>lazyfish</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Genuary 2021 [9]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Birdwatching</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 13:27:33</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>576</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28927092</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/lazyfish/pseuds/lazyfish</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Bobbi is insistent that bird watching is a training exercise.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Melinda May &amp; Bobbi Morse</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Genuary 2021 [9]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2087955</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>24</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>bird watching</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“I think you take your call sign too seriously.”</p><p>“It’s a training exercise,” Bobbi insisted, pushing past a branch that had grown across the path. It had been a while since anyone had hiked this way, and the overgrowth was more than she had bargained for. She would’ve brought a machete if she had known.</p><p>“Do people believe you when you say that?” May said drily, not bothering with brushing the branch to the side and instead stampeding through it. Bobbi snorted - May normally moved with such careful precision that seeing her muscle her way through an obstacle without a hint of finesse was <em>really</em> funny.</p><p>“They should, because it’s the truth,” Bobbi added over her shoulder, hopping over an inconveniently placed boulder.</p><p>“Explain to me how this is a training exercise.”</p><p>“A gruelling hike -”</p><p>“Morse, just because it’s not a paved trail doesn’t mean it’s <em>gruelling -</em>”</p><p>“Followed by hours of sitting absolutely still, observing something that will almost certainly try to escape you if it knows you’re there.”</p><p>“That’s a very generous interpretation of bird watching.”</p><p>“I’m a generous person,” Bobbi grinned.</p><p>May sighed, shaking her head. </p><p>“C’mon, you could at least pretend you’re happy that I got us off base for something that isn’t a mission or a supply run.”</p><p>
“I don’t think Phil will be pleased when he learns about this.”</p><p>“He knows,” Bobbi insisted. She stopped at a fork in the trail. “Right or left?”</p><p>“Left.”</p><p>“Wrong answer.”</p><p>“Wrong <em>answer</em>?” May repeated indignantly.</p><p>“Did you never take an ecology class in your life, Mel?” Bobbi asked. “Biology? Anything?”</p><p>“Not all of us are scientists,” May huffed. </p><p>“Then your observational skills need work, at the very least.”</p><p>May rolled her eyes good-naturedly, and Bobbi smiled even wider. When she was around the rest of the team May’s emotional displays were… lackluster, at best, but she was a little looser around Bobbi. Only a little, but it was enough for little things like indignation and eye rolls, and that was enough for her.</p><p>“Do you actually bird watch as a hobby?” May asked as they continued the hike.</p><p>“I did in high school,” Bobbi said with a shrug. “It was a good way to get out of the house.”</p><p>“Because you were such a shut-in,” May said. Bobbi tried not to look sheepish; the other woman undoubtedly knew about her many, <em>many</em> extracurriculars; that was part of why she had been recruited by S.H.I.E.L.D., aside from her other credentials. Someone who already could speak four languages was an asset, especially when she had a knack for learning more.</p><p>“Here we are,” Bobbi said, stopping abruptly. </p><p>May blinked. “This is the middle of the trail.”</p><p>“Trust me,” Bobbi said. She gestured with her head to the forest on the edge of the trail. Both she and May were wearing tac gear, so they didn’t have to worry about poison ivy getting on any exposed skin - small victories.</p><p>“Do you need me to explain how to bird watch?” Bobbi asked, smirking.</p><p>“I think I’ll figure it out.” May found a rock to perch on, and Bobbi found a similar one nearby. They both unhooked the binoculars they had been wearing around their necks so they could turn their eyes to the treetops and see whatever wild birds (or squirrels) there were to see.</p><p>Maybe it wasn’t a training exercise - but it was nice to spend a little time with a friend.</p>
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